My Message

So I have been doing some major reflecting lately. I have been thinking about the fact that I don't want to be famous and well known, but I want my message to be known. I want my voice to be heard, my message to be shared.

I want to empower women, not to rule the world, but to live a life that is true to themselves. A life that allows them to take their unique set of skills, talents, and passions and do something remarkable. I want women to empower each other. I want to show women that we can do so much more when we work together, when we lift each other up instead of constantly beating each other down.

We live in a world where women are constantly pitted against each other. A world where one of the greatest insults is to be told that you do something like a girl. A world where we are told that we must reach certain standards or we have failed as women. A world where those standards are unattainable. A world where women who are claimed to have reached those standards far too often allow the world to believe they have, even when they haven't. A world that tells us that a man who has decided he is a woman is a better woman than all of the rest of us. A world that has beat us down for far too long.

This world does not show us what can happen when women come together and make miracles happen. A world that does not show us that every single woman has something special and unique to offer the world. That the standards the world has set for us mean nothing. One woman cannot be everything in the world, but she can change her world.

Every woman has her specific set of gifts, talents, and passions for a reason, and that reason is to changer her world. For some women that world his her house and family. For other women that world is a classroom. Other women it is an operating room, a business, a school, a town, a state, or a country. And for some women that world really just may be the world. NO matter what world you are changing it is important. YOU are important. You have a reason. You have a purpose and the world would not be the same without you in it.

Faith in Humanity

So I have been absent for quite some time, and want to get back on things. While this blog is about empowering women, it is also about how simple things can make differences, and how anyone can do something that changes the lives of others. On Pinterest I have a "Faith in Humanity" board. Here are a few pictures from that.  

Writer's Block?

So, I know I haven't written anything in, well, what feels like forever. I have been looking for someone to highlight, I really have, but nothing is hitting that nerve in me. Nothing has sparked a light. There have definitely been individuals who I think, "That's a cool story", but nothing where I just feel this need to share their story.

Am I being too particular? Are my "standards" too high? Perhaps, but then again, that is how I can be in many things. I realized just now, though, what I think a big part of my problem is. I want to feature a woman that I know, or that I can talk to personally, or via email, SOMETHING, and not one that I stumble across on the internet. My goal has always been to highlight women that I know in my own life, and then eventually have other people nominate women in their lives. Is this a bit of a grand dream for this little venture of mine? Perhaps. But, I have always been one to dream big. I do it so well.

Great Buzzfeed Post!

In a search for a subject for my next post I stumbled across a post from Buzzfeed. Usually Buzzfeed, in my experience, merely has entertaining articles, not necessarily educational/historical ones. The article, 100 Inspiring Women, lists 100 women who were the first to do something throughout history. There is a timeline laid out with these women and their accomplishments. Take a look!

First Woman Doctor in Britain Was A... Man?

Did that title confuse you a little? Hopefully it got your attention!
Dr. James Barry, a British physician was a man of great renown. Known for his ill temper and great medical expertise, the man who had become Inspector General of Military Hospitals kept a sensitive secret throughout his medical career. This secret would not become exposed until after his death and burial, something that he had tried to prevent from happening even then.

Margaret Ann Bulkley was born in County Cork, Ireland in the 1790's. After her father, Jeremiah Bulkley, a greengrocer, was arrested for debt, Margaret and her mother turned to James Barry, Margaret's maternal uncle, for support. James Barry, a well known artist, was a liberal and forward thinker for his time. He was a member of a set who strongly advocated women's rights and education. After his Barry's death he left a large amount of money to Margaret and her mother, while his group of friends gladly took them under their care and support.

The Bulkley women moved to London where Margaret began taking lessons from Edward Fryer, a physician. Margaret was a quite capable student, and before long a rather elaborate and ambitious plan began to take shape. It was decided that Margaret would decide herself as a young man and enter university to train as a doctor, as women were not permitted to study at the university.

In 1809 the new and "resurrected" James Barry sailed from London to Edinburgh with Mrs. Buckley to establish themselves as aunt and nephew. Margaret Ann Bulkley was no longer. Margaret/James enrolled at the university as a medical student and the mother and daughter were soon well established in the area as aunt and nephew.

Thanks to an overcoat to disguise her figure and a tweak to her age to explain her higher voice and smooth chin, Margaret, now James, flew through medical school and three years later returned to London as an apprentice surgeon for six months at St. Thomas' Hospital.

In 1813 Margaret joined the army, and three years later was posted to Cape of Good Hope in South Africa. While in South Africa she hired a black manservant who would serve her for half a century, during which he would lay out six towels every day for her to use to broaden her shoulders and hide her curves.

Dr. Barry was known to be a bit of a "prickly" character, highly defensive of his honor, and very outspoken about his beliefs. When one realizes that Dr. Barry was actually a woman, I feel that you gain a better understanding as to why "he" behaved the way he did.

Apart from Barry's personality, Dr. James Barry became a surgeon of great acclaim, being the first surgeon to successfully compete a Cesarean section in Africa, saving the life of both mother and child. Barry ardently fought for proper hygiene practices, radically changed the treatment of leprosy and tropical diseases, and raged against poor medical treatment.

Although Barry's personal life and behavior had many flaws, the medical achievements reached by Dr. James Barry, a woman, were amazing for anyone of that time period. Even though she had to live her life as a man, her achievements show that, given the chance, women were just as capable as men.

While Margaret did not become the first female doctor in Britain as a woman, but as a man, she was still the first female doctor in Britain.

"First Women to...."

After looking through various pages I have bookmarked, and pins on my "Women" Pinterest board I have decided that my next project is going to be highlighting various women who were the first to "blank". In other words, first woman to attend this or that college, first woman to fly, first woman to become a doctor, etc. I feel like while some of these women may be widely known, most are only known in certain sectors and they deserve more credit. Being the first to do anything is often times a great achievement. Look for the first post in my first women to... in the next few days!

I Promise I Am Still Here!!

I have not written much this past month, but I am still here! I am working on several different things at once and have not yet found the right balance between all of them. I have been thinking about which woman I want to feature next, and nothing feels right. I liked having a mission/goal of featuring a woman from each continent, so I think I need to come up with a new plan. Hopefully by the end of the week I will have that plan in place and have my next blog post up.